Fernando Barboto, who built the Iona College Gaels into one of the top Division I men’s soccer programs in the area, led men’s soccer at New Jersey Institute of Technology, in 2016.

In announcing the appointment of Barboto as NJIT’s fourth head men’s soccer coach in the program’s Division I era, Kaplan said: “Fernando is a proven Division I head coach with New Jersey roots, who is respected throughout the region for the program he has built at Iona. We are pleased that he will guide our program and we look forward to a successful future with him as our coach in the years to come.”

The 2019 ASUN Conference Coach of the Year Fernando Barboto along with his coaching staff, who was named United Soccer Coaches Atlantic Region Coaching Staff of the Year,  led the Highlanders to the first NCAA appearance at the Division I level (first round; at Providence on November 21, 2019).

Men's soccer became the first NJIT team to capture an ASUN Tournament and Regular Season title since competing in the ASUN Conference (first season 2015-16).

NJIT tied the school-record for wins (10) in a season and ranked in the top-10 of the United Soccer Coaches Atlantic Region poll all season, with its highest ranking, week two at the No. 2 spot. 

The Highlanders ranked 14th in the NCAA for total goals with 44, while United Soccer Coaches Scholar All-American and 2019 ASUN Player of the Year Rene White concluded the season ranked fifth at 17.

As a team, NJIT racked up four major awards in the ASUN Conference: Barboto (Coach of the Year), White (Player of the Year), Alejandro Rabell (Freshman of the Year) and Samuel Reisgys (Goalkeeper of the Year).

In addition to the four major awards, nine Highlanders earned All-Conference honors: White, Reisgys and Andrew Nino (ASUN first-team),  Joao Costa, Juan Zapata, Gerald Cubero and Thomas Radon (ASUN second-team) and Arrio Rusnak joined Rabell and Reisgys (All-Freshmen team).

In 2016 and 2017, Barboto reached eight wins, marking the second-highest win total, since competing as an NCAA Division I program (first season 2004). 

NJIT made its first ASUN Men's Soccer Championship appearance in the teams' first season (2016) as a member of the school's new multi-sport conference, the ASUN Conference. Men's soccer, which played the previous two seasons as an associate member of the Sun Belt Conference, competed in the ASUN a year later than the other NJIT programs, which began play in the ASUN in 2015-16.

Five Highlanders were named to the ASUN All-Conference team – two named to the second-team and three to the all-freshmen team, in addition to two Highlanders earning ASUN all-Academic honors.  Junior Phillip Costa was the first men’s soccer player selected to ASUN Fall 2016 Winners For Life Team.

The six one-goal wins and seven shutouts in 2016 (most in the ASUN) are the most in a single season in NJIT's Division I era.  The draw against No. 22 North Florida, was the fourth of the season for the Highlanders, marking the third-straight season, the Highlanders have recorded four draws. In the DI era for NJIT (first season 2004), the team record is five set in 2005.

In 2017, Mamadou Guirassy led the nation in goals (16) and was selected ASUN Conference Player of the Year.  Guirassy was drafted in the fourth round of the 2018 Major Soccer League (MLS) SuperDraft by the Portland Timbers.

After the Highlanders advanced to the semifinals of the 2021 America East Tournament for the second straight season, NJIT saw three players named to the America East All-Conference team and what lies ahead for NJIT as graduate students Rene White and Regsan Watkins who rank among the top 5 in the NCAA Division I career goals and points leaders will be graduating. 

White, concluded his collegiate career as a two-time CoSIDA Academic All-America First-Team and All-District First-Team selectee, America East Conference first-team and All-Academic Team and ECAC Division I First Team. 

The NJIT forward was named to the Dean's List for six semesters, graduating in Fall 20 Cum Laude with a BS in Business Concentration in Financial Technology and graduated in Spring 2021 with a MS Business program.

For his career at NJIT, he tallied: 49G (NJIT DI Record), 67 GS (NJIT DI era record), 49G (NJIT DI era record; 3rd all-time), 10A (Third in the NJIT DI era record), 108 PTS (NJIT DI era record; 3rd all-time).

Watkins, who played two seasons at NJIT, was named the 2021 America East Striker of the Year, combined for 19 career goals at NJIT which ranks third, 13 assists ranks third and 51 points ranks third in the NJIT DI era.  For his career, Watkins scored (40) career goals and (101) points.

In 2022, the Highlanders earned their third straight America East Conference playoff berth under seventh-year head coach Fernando Barboto.

NJIT registered seven shutouts, which ties the NJIT Division I mark for shutouts in a season (7 in 2016).

Maximus Barboto was selected America East Rookie of the Year and named to TopDrawerSoccer.com Top 100 Freshmen List.

After four seasons at NJIT, Samuel Reisgys combined for 237 career saves (which tops the NJIT career record book), 61 matches, 22 wins, 10 ties and eight shutouts.  Reisgys will return for his fifth year in 2023.

Alejandro Rabell wraps up his Highlander career as the NJIT Division I all-time assists leader with 19 while ranking second all-time at NJIT.

Under Barboto, who completed his 13th season at Iona in November 2015, the Gaels have become a perennial top contender in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference.

Starting in 2008, when Iona posted a record of 11-6-1, the Gaels have reached double-digit wins totals in  five of the past eight seasons. They finished 2015 at 10-7-3 overall and 5-3-2 in the MAAC.

In that same eight-year period, Barboto’s Gaels have had just one sub-.500 record and that was in 2012, when they finished 7-11 overall, including two close non-conference losses against teams ranked in the Top Six nationally. Iona was 5-2 in MAAC games that season.

Headlining Iona’s run of double-digit seasons, the Gaels posted an overall record of 14-2-3 in 2009, earning MAAC Coach of the Year honors for Barboto, and then went 15-4-1 two year later in 2011.

Not surprisingly, given his teams’ success, Barboto has helped mold several players who went on to professional soccer, including three in Major League Soccer: Franklin Castellanos (New York Red Bulls); Ignacio Maganto (LA Galaxy); and, Victor Munoz (Sporting Kansas City).

Castellanos was MAAC Offensive Player of the Year in 2013, Maganto took the same honor in 2014, and Marcos Nunez made it three Iona players in a row named MAAC Offensive Player of the Year when he brought home the award in 2015. In doing so, it marked the second time in NCAA Division I history that the same program has had three-straight conference Offensive Players of the Year with a different player winning the honor each time.

Iona under Barboto has had numerous conference award winners. In 2013 alone, the Gaels had five All-MAAC honorees, as well as three NSCAA All-Region selections, and 12 MAAC All-Academic picks.

“I’m excited about the chance to come to NJIT and build a strong program,” said Barboto, who met his new team for the first time on Wednesday afternoon. “In meeting with Lenny (Kaplan) and the rest of the people here, I can tell this is a school and department that cares about its men’s soccer program,” he said. “NJIT is a great academic institution that has the resources to create a winning environment.

Barboto’s recruiting base at Iona has centered around players from the New Jersey/New York metro area, with a sprinkling of international students. He expects to continue that formula at NJIT.

A 1994 graduate of New Jersey’s Montclair State University, Barboto first became a Division I head coach at Saint Francis University in Loretto, PA, in 2000.

At Saint Francis, Barboto took over a program that had never won more than four conference games in 11 previous seasons. Under Barboto’s guidance, the Red Flash topped their best previous conference record, winning five league games in each of his first two seasons.

He took the helm at Iona in 2003, inheriting a program that had gone winless in 20 matches in 2002. Barboto’s first season at the New Rochelle, NY, college produced five wins. He then guided the program to steady progress, getting a winning record of 7-6-5 in 2006, then 8 wins in 2007, before the breakthrough to 11 victories in 2008.

Including that breakthrough season in 2008, Iona’s record under Barboto is 85-52-15 over the last eight years.

In conference games, Iona finished on the winning side of the ledger every season from 2006 through 2015. In his 13 seasons at Iona, Barboto’s teams were a combined 65-43-10 in Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference games and his conference record at Saint Francis, which competes in the Northeast Conference, was 13-11-3 in three seasons.

His overall record at Iona, including the building years, was 116-103-27 in 13 seasons. His overall record as a Division I head coach is 133-134-34 in 16 seasons.

Coming to NJIT represents a move closer to home for Barboto, who resides in Cresskill, NJ, with his wife, Betina, and their sons Maximus and Tristan, and daughter Valentina.

As an undergraduate at Montclair State, Fernando Barboto was a four-year letter winner and was National Soccer Coaches Association All-America as senior playing for the perennial Division III powerhouse.

He went on to play six professional seasons with the North Jersey Imperials of the United Soccer League.

He began coaching as head coach of the women’s soccer team at Montclair State, a position he held from 1995 through 1998.

Leaving his alma mater, Barboto signed on as an assistant men’s coach at Lafayette, where he helped the Leopards win two straight Patriot League championships. He went from Lafayette to become head coach at Saint Francis.

Updated June 2023